Warning: This article contains full spoilers for X-Men ’97 Season 2, Episode 7!
As strong as the response has been to X-Men ’97 so far, I think a lot of X-fans have been pretty impatient for the series to get to Colossus. This is a character who never fully received his due in the original series, and if Nightcrawler can enjoy increased time in the spotlight, why not Piotr Rasputin? Those fans are likely to be thrilled by “Strange Land, Savage Heart,” an episode that masterfully explores the compassion that defines both Colossus (Robert Cait) and Nightcrawler (Adrian Hough).
Episode 7 opens by showing us what Colossus and his sister Illyana (Courtenay Taylor) were up to on the day Genosha died. I’ll grant that it’s pretty disappointing to see a character with as much unexplored potential as Illyana killed off so abruptly, though my hope is that the series can still use her death as an excuse to get into the Limbo of it all eventually. For now, though, her death becomes a logical catalyst for Colossus to do exactly what he did back in the ’90s comics – turn his back on Xavier’s dream and throw his lot in with the Acolytes.
From there, Episode 7 establishes a new conflict to test the fledgling X-Corp team. Exodus (Bo Poraj) and his Acolytes have kidnapped noted scumbag bigot Graydon Creed (Ben Pronsky), forcing our heroes into action to stop Creed’s assassination. The series continues to make the most of the complicated political climate it’s established, with this episode really demonstrating the value of having X-Corp operating alongside the more traditional, school-focused X-Men. I only wish Season 2 had a few more episodes, so we could continue seeing the two teams carrying out missions and dealing with this chaotic new reality. But with two chapters left in Season 2, I suspect it’s all Apocalypse from here on out.
Episode 7 could have given us a straightforward conflict between X-Corp and the Acolytes, but I’m glad that’s not quite the path it chooses. We’ve already seen the X-Men outnumbered and fighting for their lives in the Savage Land. Instead, this showdown takes a more philosophical and ideological slant, one that befits a storyline with Nightcrawler and Colossus at the helm. This is a war of words more than it is of fists and energy blasts. Though we do still get a little jungle action courtesy of Bishop (Isaac-Robinson Smith) and Polaris (Carolina Ravassa), a duo who are quickly developing into a very entertaining pair.
The trial sequence is handled nicely, with both Exodus and Nightcrawler making a strong case for their respective points of view. The outcome is also well done, with Exodus jumping the gun to execute Creed and viewers only learning later that, no, Nightcrawler did not successfully appeal to Colossus’ sense of mercy. The series may have little interest in Illyana right now, but it definitely makes the most of Colossus here. That’s why it’s so exciting to see the steel-skinned mutant joining up with the Xavier Insititute at the end. I look forward to seeing this series dig into the threeway friendship between Colossus, Nightcrawler, and Wolverine.
Finally, this episode ends with another tease of what’s to come in the final two chapters of Season 2, as X-Force encounters the desicated remains of Apocalypse in Greece. That raises some intriguing new questions for the final conflict. Is Gambit a mere Horseman, or has he become the new host for Apocalypse himself? With the next episode being called “The Dead Man’s Hand,” I doubt we have long to wait before finding out.
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